Cory with unknown issue

[Corylover]

Hi fish friends!  So I have an albino cory who is fairly new to me, and he is displaying some issues.  He seems to almost have a coating on him and his shine is quite dull.  I have three other corys with him and they are all fine and happy.  Sadly I had to do an fish in cycle due to unforeseen circumstances.  He also has been lethargic and I do not believe he has been eating but I am not 100% sure, may just be me not observing him actively eating.  The darker picture is my healthy albino and the brighter pictures are the cory I am concerned about.  Also they eyes look weird because of my flash being on to get a good picture, his eyes look normal.  He also has a tiny tiny red spot on his head but its very very small.  I can't find anything to help me figure this out, so any and all ideas and suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Ammonia 0ppm

Nitrite 2ppm (high I know I have been dosing well with stress guard and am working on it and it was an emergency situation to do a fish in cycle along with daily 10% water changes)

Ph 7.5

Temp 78-80

Edited Wednesday at 02:32 AM by Corylover

[karanit]

A thick slime coat could be an indication of flukes which irritate the fish and make it produce extra slime. I think the smoking gun is your nitrites. Why don't you do a larger water change to get it down to like 0.25 PPM?

(I don't use stress guard so maybe it does detoxify nitrate [edit meant nitrite here], but I thought it was prime that was used for that. I checked quick on the seachem website and didn't see anything about nitrite on stress guards page but it is on prime's page)

Edited Wednesday at 02:25 PM by karanit
nitrite/nitrate autocorrect

[Tony s]

When you see any nitrites, you need an immediate water change. Then dechlorinate with seachem prime. It may also have the benefit of detoxing ammonia and nitrite. I believe it does. Then add some bb back into the tank. I use fritzyme 7. Fish in is not a big deal provided you’re constantly doing your water changes to keep your ammonia and nitrites down. It can be a lot of work, but it keeps your fish healthy 

[Corylover]

On 9/25/2024 at 8:06 AM, karanit said:

A thick slime coat could be an indication of flukes which irritate the fish and make it produce extra slime. I think the smoking gun is your nitrites. Why don't you do a larger water change to get it down to like 0.25 PPM?

(I don't use stress guard so maybe it does detoxify nitrate, but I thought it was prime that was used for that. I checked quick on the seachem website and didn't see anything about nitrite on stress guards page but it is on prime's page)

I will definitly do a larger water change, my local store told me to avoid large water changes as it can mess with the cycling process but it is truly worth a try so I will do that.  Anything I can do to treat the flukes?  I also see that epsom salt can help but I would love your advice.

On 9/25/2024 at 9:46 AM, Tony s said:

When you see any nitrites, you need an immediate water change. Then dechlorinate with seachem prime. It may also have the benefit of detoxing ammonia and nitrite. I believe it does. Then add some bb back into the tank. I use fritzyme 7. Fish in is not a big deal provided you’re constantly doing your water changes to keep your ammonia and nitrites down. It can be a lot of work, but it keeps your fish healthy 

Hi tony thank you for replying!  I have been adding seachem stability to the tank every day.  I was told not to over use prime as it can bind the ammonia and nitrites and pause the cycling process.  Any other advice on that?  I really appriciate you getting back to me 🙂

Edited Wednesday at 01:54 PM by Corylover

[karanit]

My understanding is that while reducing the nitrites does/could slow down your cycling process, you have fish in there so you need to balance the cycling process with the health of the fish. I wouldn't water change the nitrites all the way to zero but 2ppm is quite high.

Flukes are treated with praziquantel, so meds like prazicleanse, prazipro. Other meds have praziquantel in a smaller dose mixed with another med, like paracleanse, API general cure. https://aquariumscience.org/index.php/10-6-flukes/

[Tony s]

On 9/25/2024 at 9:47 AM, Corylover said:

it can bind the ammonia and nitrites and pause the cycling process

I don't believe it binds it quite like that. I've always used it when i get a little too enthused for a new tank and it finishes the cycle just fine. And you'll still be adding new ammonia and nitrite as well. I would only use it at 1-2 times strength though. I've done the 5x and saw a betta just quiver and shake from it. I'd also only use it evry other day as the label says

On 9/25/2024 at 10:41 AM, karanit said:

I wouldn't water change the nitrites all the way to zero but 2ppm is quite high.

Agreed, as long as prime is used as well

[Tony s]

I don't think I'd do more than a 50% water change at one time

But, any other time, you see nitrite, change water. Unlike ammonia, nitrite doesn't have a safe level. Safe ammonia being less than 0.25

[Corylover]

On 9/25/2024 at 10:49 AM, Tony s said:

I don't think I'd do more than a 50% water change at one time

But, any other time, you see nitrite, change water. Unlike ammonia, nitrite doesn't have a safe level. Safe ammonia being less than 0.25

Awesome I will definitely do a higher water change and add some prime.  Should I treat my whole tank for the flukes or just the one cory?

On 9/25/2024 at 10:41 AM, karanit said:

My understanding is that while reducing the nitrites does/could slow down your cycling process, you have fish in there so you need to balance the cycling process with the health of the fish. I wouldn't water change the nitrites all the way to zero but 2ppm is quite high.

Flukes are treated with praziquantel, so meds like prazicleanse, prazipro. Other meds have praziquantel in a smaller dose mixed with another med, like paracleanse, API general cure. https://aquariumscience.org/index.php/10-6-flukes/

Thank you so much for this information and article, I will pick up some meds, do you recommend treating the whole tank or just the one cory?  I really appriciate the effort you have put in to helping me.  Thank you so very much.

[Tony s]

On 9/25/2024 at 11:02 AM, Corylover said:

Should I treat my whole tank for the flukes or just the one cory?

I'm not sure that's what you have. Flukes can be hard to diagnose. It may just be due to water quality issues. But we can ask @Colu

[Corylover]

On 9/25/2024 at 11:05 AM, Tony s said:

I'm not sure that's what you have. Flukes can be hard to diagnose. It may just be due to water quality issues. But we can ask @Colu

You are awesome!  I will continue to work on the water quality.  Im new to the site so I am unsure how to ask them, will they just reply to your tag? 

[Tony s]

On 9/25/2024 at 11:09 AM, Corylover said:

so I am unsure how to ask them, will they just reply to your tag

Yes, they usually do. Depending on work schedule of course. Tagging things like that grabs their attention directly. at least here. not sure about anywhere else

Edited Wednesday at 03:19 PM by Tony s

[karanit]

On 9/25/2024 at 11:02 AM, Corylover said:

do you recommend treating the whole tank or just the one cory?

I'm not sure how to proceed as the meds usually have you dose and then not do a water change for some amount of days to let the fish sit in the meds. I'm not sure how to adjust that to account for the water changes you'll need for the cycling issue. Maybe someone with more experience can chime in.

[Corylover]

Hi guys!  Thank you for all your help, I got home from classes today and decided to look at him very closely and I am now convinced it ick.  I see tiny white spots that look almost shiny but that may have been my light.  Its hard to tell with him being albino.  Any ideas there?

On 9/25/2024 at 2:36 PM, Corylover said:

Hi guys!  Thank you for all your help, I got home from classes today and decided to look at him very closely and I am now convinced it ick.  I see tiny white spots that look almost shiny but that may have been my light.  Its hard to tell with him being albino.  Any ideas there?

They are more noticeable today then yesterday when I thought I saw something but wasn't sure.

[Tony s]

On 9/25/2024 at 2:36 PM, Corylover said:

I am now convinced it ick

Yeah, that's what I saw when first starting out. With water quality off, it really opens the door for a lot of health issues. I only have seen things like bloat, ich, dropsy when the water has problems, and the fish have a lot of stressors. I'd get some ich-x and some aquarium salt. use the salt now. 1 tbsp to 3-5 gallons of water should be fine for corys. and slow the ich down. get the water under control and then add the ich-x. Or, if you think it's an emergency, you can always pull him and do the ich-x and salt in a quarantine tank.   

[Corylover]

On 9/25/2024 at 2:44 PM, Tony s said:

Yeah, that's what I saw when first starting out. With water quality off, it really opens the door for a lot of health issues. I only have seen things like bloat, ich, dropsy when the water has problems, and the fish have a lot of stressors. I'd get some ich-x and some aquarium salt. use the salt now. 1 tbsp to 3-5 gallons of water should be fine for corys. and slow the ich down. get the water under control and then add the ich-x. Or, if you think it's an emergency, you can always pull him and do the ich-x and salt in a quarantine tank.   

Ill go pick up both now, I just did a 30% water change and added my aqueon conditioner which says to detox ammonia and nitrites.  

On 9/25/2024 at 2:58 PM, Corylover said:

Ill go pick up both now, I just did a 30% water change and added my aqueon conditioner which says to detox ammonia and nitrites.  

 

On 9/25/2024 at 2:44 PM, Tony s said:

Yeah, that's what I saw when first starting out. With water quality off, it really opens the door for a lot of health issues. I only have seen things like bloat, ich, dropsy when the water has problems, and the fish have a lot of stressors. I'd get some ich-x and some aquarium salt. use the salt now. 1 tbsp to 3-5 gallons of water should be fine for corys. and slow the ich down. get the water under control and then add the ich-x. Or, if you think it's an emergency, you can always pull him and do the ich-x and salt in a quarantine tank.   

What would you say qualifies as an emergency?  I'm trying so hard to take good care of these guys, I love them so much.  I feel like I am failing them by not knowing enough.  I can't put him in a quarantine tank due to lack of funds and resources.  I just worry I am going to do something wrong and hurt them by not treating the ich immediately and itll spread to my other corys.  I am also going to turn up the heat.

[Tony s]

On 9/25/2024 at 2:58 PM, Corylover said:

I can't put him in a quarantine tank due to lack of funds and resources.

Understand completely. This hobby can be fun, but not cheap.

On 9/25/2024 at 2:58 PM, Corylover said:

I just worry I am going to do something wrong and hurt them by not treating the ich immediately and itll spread to my other corys.

Here's the thing, and it's a hard one for beginners. Everybody screws up. We all lose animals. It takes time and experience. We screw up, and then we do better. It's going to be very frustrating at times, trust me on this one. I completely crashed a 75g tank a couple of months ago. I saved most of the fish by having a backup tank (luckily). I followed some manufacturers claims and it backfired on me. but we learn. And we do better.

Ich is kind of strange, it can be slow moving at times. So that gives you some space to fix your water. Are you sure it's ich? ich has small spots, kind of looks like somebody salted the fish. There's also something called epistylis, looks like ich. is a bit clumpier and more raised off the body. and speeds up under higher temps. Thankfully it's not as common as ich. So, I'd treat the whole tank. That should work fine. 

[Tony s]

On 9/25/2024 at 4:27 PM, Tony s said:

I just worry I am going to do something wrong and hurt them by not treating the ich immediately

The other thing i should have said first. I think you're doing a great job. You noticed the ich right away, and that the water was off right away. Paying attention and obviously caring about your animals is the whole point. So well done!

[Corylover]

On 9/25/2024 at 4:27 PM, Tony s said:

Understand completely. This hobby can be fun, but not cheap.

Here's the thing, and it's a hard one for beginners. Everybody screws up. We all lose animals. It takes time and experience. We screw up, and then we do better. It's going to be very frustrating at times, trust me on this one. I completely crashed a 75g tank a couple of months ago. I saved most of the fish by having a backup tank (luckily). I followed some manufacturers claims and it backfired on me. but we learn. And we do better.

Ich is kind of strange, it can be slow moving at times. So that gives you some space to fix your water. Are you sure it's ich? ich has small spots, kind of looks like somebody salted the fish. There's also something called epistylis, looks like ich. is a bit clumpier and more raised off the body. and speeds up under higher temps. Thankfully it's not as common as ich. So, I'd treat the whole tank. That should work fine. 

So I went back to my local store and got a discounted tank so I have set up a hospital tank and dosed it with api super ich cure.  I appriciate your kind words about my care for them, that means a lot.  But now I am stressed about over dosing on the meds UGH!  Im going to add some salt to the other tank preventatively incase anybody else is infected and not presenting yet.  I am sure now its ich since he does look like he was dipped in salt.  I hope the meds work and I don't lose him!  Thank you so much

[Colu]

On 9/25/2024 at 10:43 PM, Corylover said:

So I went back to my local store and got a discounted tank so I have set up a hospital tank and dosed it with api super ich cure.  I appriciate your kind words about my care for them, that means a lot.  But now I am stressed about over dosing on the meds UGH!  Im going to add some salt to the other tank preventatively incase anybody else is infected and not presenting yet.  I am sure now its ich since he does look like he was dipped in salt.  I hope the meds work and I don't lose him!  Thank you so much

Most important thing is to get your ammonia and nitrite to zero add a small amount of aquarium salt with API ich cure as ich causes massive electrolyte loss and salt adds back in essential electrolytes add an extra air stone during treatment high levels of nitrite will  weaken immune system leading to stress ich or secondary bacterial infections